The Like a Dragon franchise has always been filled to the brim with dozens upon dozens of substories, in which the various protagonists help citizens around the city with their problems. WhileLike a Dragon: Pirate Yakzua in Hawaiihas much fewer substories than a typical Like a Dragon game due to its Gaiden status, there are still plenty of good ones for players to participate in during their journey.
Review: Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
Waking up marooned on a tropical island with no memory of who he is, Goro Majima does the only sensible thing. He becomes a pirate captain.
These substories can range from emotional tales, and opportunities to follow up on plot points from Infinite Wealth, to methods for unlocking new minigames. If you want to get the most out of your Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii experience, then be sure to play the following substories.
10Hironobu Shigeta, 65 Years Old
Living the Dream
Topping off this list is Hironobu Shigeta, 65 Years Old, a substory about a 65-year-old man who has longed for nothing more than to live out his dreams and go out to sea. Luckily for him, Captain Majima is here to provide exactly that service, even if the man’s family is completely against the idea. This leads to a very sweet story of the old man realizing his true treasure was always his loved ones. Good thing they ran into Majima and not amuch worse pirate crew.
While this is a short and sweet substory, there also isn’t much to it other than a few cutscenes and a single fight on your pirate ship. While that isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it does have to rank at the bottom of this list because most other substories have a bit more going for them.
9Miracle Aquarium
The Bear is Back
It has become a running gag in the past few Like a Dragon games for players to check in on Yasuda and his increasingly bizarre and dangerous circus. This time around, he’s brought a real live polar bear to Hawaii! Naturally, this leads to a fight where Majima must calm down this raging beast.
While there’s nothing particularly new or interesting in this susbtory, it does allow the player to admire the methods which RGG Studios uses to develop Like a Dragon games so fast. After making a bear model once in Yakuza 5, the studio has since been able to reuse this fight in every game over the last decade. So, while the substory itself isn’t interesting enough to place high on this list, that little look at how these games work is enough to rank it on the list.
8I Wanna Be Your Nadeshiko
Not so Traditional
Next up on the list is the I Wanna Be Your Nadeshiko substory. This will probably be one of the first substories most players begin as it appears right on the beach of Hawaii once the player reaches that hub in chapter 2 of the game. This substory features a strong woman trying to act like a traditional Japanese girl in order to further her career.
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While this substory can be considered pretty basic as far as Like a Dragon quests go, it is very amusing to see Majima try to whisper the correct things this woman should say across the table unnoticed. Plus, how could a substory that gave us the comedy gold that is Mt. Fujoshi not rank somewhere on this list?
7If I Weren’t an Idol
The Dark Side of the Industry
The Like a Dragon franchise has always gone out of its way to portray every angle of the Idol industry, both the good and the bad. This substory has a unique spin on the trope by having Majima following along a tour bus of otaku who are trying to get closer to their beloved idol. Naturally, these poor fools are being scammed as the tour is completely awful.
While the story of an evil idol who is taking advantage of her fans isn’t too out of this world for a Like a Dragon substory, this one does have quite an amusing ending where the otaku are metaphorically reborn and join Captain Majima’s crew. This fun ending to the substory is what truly earned it a placement on this list.
6Smile Again
Catching Up with a Familiar Face
While the first Like a Dragon Gaiden game merely took place around the same time as a previous game, Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is a full companion piece toLike a Dragon: Infinite Wealthand centers many of its substories around continuing the stories of minor characters from that title. The first of these substories that the player will encounter is Smile Again and stars Jeff, the ID thief/salesman from Infinite Wealth.
In addition to all of that, this substory gave us the hilarious image of Goro Majima holding a taco in confusion like Graha Tia in FFXIV, hopefully cementing the 2020s as the decade of gaming where we’ll see Japanese characters eating tacos. Just don’t bite into it too fast, it’s very spicy.
5Coffee & Comedy
Seeing Old Friends Again
Another substory that continues directly where Infinite Wealth left off is Coffee & Comedy, which sees the return of the comedy duo of Sorara and Mameoka. While this substory isn’t as dramatic as the one involving Jeff, it’s nice to see that characters in this universe don’t remain static. Just because Ichiban solved their problems in Infinite Wealth, that doesn’t mean new problems will never arise.
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Of course, not only do things end well for the duo, their situation even improves as Mameoka proposes to a woman by the end of the substory! Seeing these characters remain happy as time goes on is a treat and, hopefully, we’ll get to check in on them again next time this franchise visits Hawaii.
4Sicko Snap Saga
Snap Those Sickos Again!
Several substories in Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii exist solely for the purpose of unlocking new minigames. Because minigames are generally some of the best side content in these games, it’s only natural that their substories rank high on the list. The first of these is the return of Sicko Snap, a minigame which parodies Pokemon Snap by sending the player out on a trolley to take photos of any sicko roaming the streets of Hawaii.
While the first few stages of Sicko Snap are ripped directly from Infinite Wealth, the final stage is completely new as it sees Majima visit a tropical island full of sickos. Adding just a single new map to Sicko Snap breathes a lot of life into this minigame, which can get old incredibly fast. Combine that with a new gameplay gimmick like the Crystal Papillion ‘boss fight’ at the end, and you’ve got a recipe for not only one of the most improved minigames in Pirates in Hawaii, but also one of the best substories in the game.
3The Smartest Pirate Crew
Prepare to Study
The next minigame substory on this list sees the return of the Onubara Vocational School minigame fromYakuza: Like a Dragonand Infinite Wealth. While not much has changed about this minigame (in fact, about 90% of thetest answersare the same as the previous title), the few new tests here are great for testing one’s knowledge of piracy.
What is great to see here though, is that after two games of acting like a creep to women who work at this school, Ikari finally gets some comeuppance, as the current woman working here is willing to fight him if he ever goes full Ikari mode. This minigame is inevitably going to return in the next mainline game, so make sure you continue to study up on trivia.
2Dragon Kart in Paradise
Expanded and Enhanced
Yakuza: Like a Dragon introduced a Mario Kart-like minigame which saw the player race around Yokohama against many vicious NPCs. While this minigame didn’t return in Infinite Wealth, it’s back in full force in Pirates in Hawaii. Not only does this minigame return, but it also has an entirely new mode based on the Battle Modes featured in many Mario Kart games.
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While the return ofDragon Kartis always a treat, the actual substory surrounding it isn’t as in-depth as it was in Yakuza: Like A Dragon. After being introduced to all of your rival racers, there isn’t really a story here. So, while the new mode is nice, it wouldn’t feel right to place this substory at the top of this list.
1Stay Crazy
Watch out for Cars!
While Crazy Taxi fans will likely have to wait over a year for that franchise’s revival game to come out, its spirit has continued to live on inside of the Crazy Delivery minigame featured in Infinite Wealth and Pirate: Yakuza in Hawaii. Once the player begins the substory where they’re reintroduced to this minigame, they’ll have access not only to the four new delivery courses but also the four from Infinite Wealth!
Seeing a minigame whose content was doubled between games is such a rarity that it would be a crime not to rank this substory high on this list. Seeing the spirit of Crazy Taxi live on decades later is a joy and, hopefully, minigames and substories like this one continue to appear in the Like a Dragon franchise.
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